US5542532A

Movatterモバイル変換

Info

Publication number: US5542532A
Application number: US08/549,460
Authority: US
Inventors: David C. Mitchell
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1995-10-27
Filing date: 1995-10-27
Publication date: 1996-08-06
Anticipated expiration: 2015-10-27

Abstract

A container includes an angled sidewall with a non-overlapping thread. A lid has a lid sidewall set at the same angle as the container sidewall. The angle is between 12° and 18° from vertical and creates a strong connection when the two pieces are screwed together. In one embodiment, the container is a compact disc holder capable of holding a compact disc free from interference and damage. A top piece (lid) of the compact disc holder screws down on a bottom piece but maintains pressure on the compact disc to hold the disc between a pedestal on the bottom piece and a stabilizer disposed on the top piece.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a plastic container for securely holding various types of objects, e.g., nuts and bolts, food and drink. Some uses may require that the container be water-resistant.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Plastic is used in many packaging applications throughout many different industries. Large costs are incurred not only in raw materials to make the plastics, but also in the tools and machines used to form the plastics into the various required shapes. Injection molding and thermal forming are two different methods of forming plastics into various shapes.

Injection molding involves complex machines and dies which are used to shape the plastic. In order to create a particular container out of plastic, it is necessary that the die be designed. This die only makes one form of plastic piece. In other words, a different die is needed for a different object made from plastic. Injection molding tools are expensive since they have to totally encase the part being made.

Thermal forming is an alternate method of making a plastic part. In thermal forming, a die is also made in order to create a given plastic part. However, a thermal forming tool is only the shape of one side of the part being formed thereby making it easier to make and not as expensive as a die in an injection molding apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a securely closing enclosure for objects where the enclosure can be made by either an injection molding process or a thermal forming process. In accordance with the present invention, a circular lid is provided having a lid sidewall where the lid is provided sidewall is tapered at an angle between about 12° and 18° from a vertical. It has been determined that about 15° is a most effective angle. Further, the lid sidewall has at least two non-overlapping lid threads disposed therein. A container body is also provided having a circular opening of a dimension substantially the same as that of the circular lid. Further, the container body has a container sidewall where the container sidewall is also tapered at an angle between about 12° and 18° from the vertical. The container sidewall has at least two non-overlapping container threads disposed therein. The lid threads on the lid sidewall and the container threads on the container sidewall are of substantially the same pitch and quantity so that the lid can be screwed down onto the container. The lid threads and the container threads preferably have a depth in the lid sidewall and the container sidewall, respectively, which is a constant value at all points on the lid and container sidewalls. In such case, the circular lid and the container piece can be made from a thinner plastic and a lid screwed down onto the container body provides a securely closed container.

In another embodiment, an open container is provided which has a ring instead of a lid. A ring is similar to a lid, however, the ring does not have a top surface although the ring does have a sidewall and threads. The ring cooperates with the container piece to create a rigid opening edge by the cooperation of the threads when the pieces are screwed together.

In one embodiment, the above container is a compact disc holder for holding a compact disc in such a way that the disc is not subject to damage.

In a further embodiment, the compact disc holder includes a compact disc pedestal to keep the compact disc from being scratched or damaged. In addition, a stabilizer is used to keep the compact disc in place.

In yet another embodiment, the compact disc holder can be stacked. A stacking locator is disposed in the first upper surface of the top piece and a stacking receiver is disposed in the second lower surface of the bottom piece. The stacking locator and stacking receiver have substantially the same shape and size in order to be received by one another.

In still yet another embodiment, the bottom piece of the compact disc holder includes a flange which has a removable portion attached.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects and many of the intended advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals designate like or corresponding parts throughout, wherein:

FIG. 1A is a perspective representation of a circular lid;

FIG. 1B is a perspective view of a container piece;

FIG. 1C is a perspective view of a lid ring;

FIG. 2A is a side view of a lid;

FIG. 2B is a side view of a container;

FIG. 3A is a top view of a top piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 3B is a side view of a top piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 3C is a bottom view of a top piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 4A is a top view of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 4B is a side view of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 4C is a bottom view of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the bottom of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the top of a top piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of a top piece of a compact disc holder;

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view of a compact disc holder and compact disc; and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a bottom piece of a compact disc holder having a square flange.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Now, an enclosure which can be used to hold many different objects and which is easily formable with a thermal forming process will be described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1A, circular lid 1 is used as the cover of the enclosure. The circular lid 1 has alid sidewall 3 which extends around the circumference of the circular lid 1. Thelid sidewall 3 is set at an angle, θ, where θ is between 12° and 18° from a vertical. The angle θ is significant since it allows for easy removal of the circular lid 1 from a die used to make the circular lid 1. In addition, it has been determined that 15° is an optimal angle from vertical for thislid sidewall 3. An angle of 15° provides for easy removal from the forming die as well as for maintaining a close fit. At least onelid thread 5 is disposed in thelid sidewall 3. Thelid thread 5 is set at a constant root depth into thelid sidewall 3. In other words, thelid thread 5 is at a same depth in thelid sidewall 3 at all points along thelid thread 5. This is true even though thelid sidewall 3 is set at an angle between 12° and 18° from vertical. In the present invention, thelid thread 5 does not overlap anyother lid thread 5 on asame lid sidewall 3. Thelid thread 5 extends through thelid sidewall 3 to a back surface. In other words, the underside is the gripping threaded surface.

Thecontainer 11 includes acontainer body 13 which can be of any size in order to accommodate items to be stored in the enclosure. Thecontainer body 13 has acontainer sidewall 15. Thecontainer sidewall 15 is set at an angle θ which is between 12° and 18° from vertical. Acontainer thread 17 is disposed in thecontainer sidewall 15. Thecontainer thread 17 is at a same pitch and number as that of a respective circular lid 1. In other words, in operation the circular lid 1 is screwed down onto thecontainer sidewall 15 so that the lid thread. 5 and thecontainer thread 17 interact and lock together. Thecontainer thread 17 is set into thecontainer sidewall 15 at a constant root depth. Thus, similar to thelid thread 5 in thelid sidewall 3, thecontainer thread 17 is at a constant depth at all points along thecontainer thread 17 in thecontainer sidewall 15. In addition, a number ofnon-overlapping container threads 17 is the same as the number oflid threads 5 in the associated circular lid 1.

In operation, a circular lid 1 is used in conjunction with an associatedcontainer 11. The circular lid 1 is set on thecontainer 11 so as to cooperate with thecontainer sidewall 15. The lid 1 is then screwed into place using an interaction of thelid thread 5 and thecontainer thread 17. Once the lid 1 is fully screwed down, the enclosure is complete.

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the angle θ of thelid sidewall 3 and thecontainer sidewall 15 must be within the same range of 12° to 18° from a vertical. It is not necessary, however, that the angle of thelid sidewall 3 and thecontainer sidewall 15 be exactly the same value. It may be necessary, in some cases, to adjust the value of either thelid sidewall 3 or thecontainer sidewall 15 in order to improve the fit. This could be due to either the characteristics of the plastics material being used or the desired characteristics of the enclosure, for instance, if it is necessary that the seal be either water-tight or gas-tight depending upon the desired application for the enclosure.

In another embodiment, an open container can be formed using thecontainer 11 as described previously. Instead of the lid 1, however, aring 21, as shown in FIG. 1C, is used. Aring 21, in effect, is a lid 1 without a lid surface 9. Thering 21 has all of the other characteristics of the lid 1 including thesidewall 3 at an angle between 12° and 18° from the vertical and thelid thread 5 set at a constant root depth in thelid sidewall 3. As shown in FIG. 1C, thelid thread 5 deforms thelid sidewall 3 to form thelid thread 5 on the inside of thelid sidewall 3. Thering 21 is screwed down onto thecontainer sidewall 15 and screwed into place. Thering 21 functions to provide support to thecontainer sidewall 15. As a result, thecontainer 11, in this embodiment, is provided with a stronger opening edge. This facilitates the use of thinner plastic materials to make thecontainer 11 where the rigidity of the container is maintained by the combination of thering 21 and the interaction with thecontainer sidewall 15.

In another embodiment, the present invention is used to implement a holder for a compact disc. The compact disc holder encloses acompact disc 25 between atop piece 31 and abottom piece 33, as shown in FIG. 9.

Thetop piece 31 is circular and includes atop surface 38 and atop sidewall 35, as shown in FIG. 7. Thetop sidewall 35 is at angle θ₁ which is between 12° and 18° from a vertical, as shown in FIG. 3B. The range between 12° and 18° from vertical is used since it is found to be advantageous in removing atop piece 31 from a forming die. A preferred value of 15° for the angle θ₁ of thetop sidewall 35 has been determined. At least two non-overlappingtop threads 37 are disposed in thetop sidewall 35. Eachtop thread 37 has the same root dimension in thetop sidewall 35. In other words, atop thread 37 is at a same depth in all points of thetop thread 37 relative to thetop sidewall 35 even though thetop sidewall 35 is at an angle from the vertical. As in the previous described embodiments, thetop thread 37 deforms thetop sidewall 35 to form an inner top thread surface.

A stackinglocator 39 is disposed in thetop surface 38 to facilitate the stacking of more than one compact disc holder. Further, a locatinggroove 41 is located in thetop surface 38 to locate one compact disc holder to another compact disc holder when stacked one upon another. Anannular groove 43 is disposed in thetop surface 38 around the stackinglocator 39 which is located in the center of thetop surface 38. Theannular groove 43 causes astabilizer 46 to be formed in the bottom of thetop surface 38 as shown in FIG. 8. Thestabilizer 46 could be formed by means other than theannular groove 43.

Thebottom piece 33 is preferably circular, although it could have a squared-off flange, and is of substantially the same dimension as an associatedtop piece 31, as shown in FIG. 5. Thebottom piece 33 has abottom sidewall 45 which is at an angle θ₂ between 12° and 18° from vertical as shown in FIG. 4B. At least twobottom threads 47 are disposed in thebottom sidewall 45. Eachbottom thread 47 has a same root dimension in that thebottom thread 47 is at a same depth at each point in thebottom sidewall 45 even though the bottom sidewall is at an angle between 12° and 18° from vertical. Thebottom piece 33 includes atop surface 49. ACD pedestal 51 is disposed in the center of thetop surface 49. ACD locator 53 is located on theCD pedestal 51. On anunderside 71 of thetop surface 49 of thebottom piece 33, a stackingreceiver 55, as seen in FIG. 6, is disposed for receiving the stackinglocator 39 disposed on atop piece 31. In addition, a locatingrib 57 is also disposed in theunderside 71 of thetop surface 49 of thebottom piece 33 to interact with the locatinggroove 41 of atop piece 31 which is stacked below.

As shown in FIG. 4B, thetop surface 49 of thebottom piece 33 can be slanted from the periphery toward the center of thetop surface 49 at an angle of A°. Preferably, this angle is anywhere between 0° and 15° relative to a horizontal. This prevents thecompact disc 25 from contacting thetop surface 49. Further, thetop surface 38 of thetop piece 31 tapers down from the periphery to the center of thetop piece 31 at an angle A which is also between 0° and 15° from a horizontal in order to coincide with an underside of thetop surface 49 of thebottom piece 33 similarly angled. This facilitates the placement of one compact disc holder upon another in that thetop surface 38 will interact more easily with thebottom piece 33.

In operation, acompact disc 25 is placed on thebottom piece 33 so that acenter hole 61 of thecompact disc 25 is positioned on theCD locator 53, as shown in FIG. 9. Thecompact disc 25 will then rest on theCD pedestal 51. Thetop piece 31 is then screwed into place over thecompact disc 25 on theCD pedestal 51. Thestabilizer 46 will hold thecompact disc 25 firmly on theCD pedestal 51 when thetop piece 31 is screwed into place. TheCD pedestal 51 is of a height sufficient to keep thecompact disc 25 from touching thetop surface 49 of thebottom piece 33. In this way, thecompact disc 25 will not be damaged. In addition, the height of theCD pedestal 51 will aid in removal of thecompact disc 25 since a user will be able to easily grab thecompact disc 25 with her fingers. Since thestabilizer 46 of thetop piece 31 is holding thecompact disc 25 against theCD pedestal 51, there is no movement of thecompact disc 25 when the compact disc holder is fully closed.

In a further embodiment of thebottom piece 33, a rectangular orsquare flange 71 can be attached to thebottom side wall 45. Theflange 71 can be used to provide additional packaging material for the compact disc holder. Further, theflange 71 could include aremovable portion 73 which could be used, e.g., in a retail environment for either inventory control or as a shoplifting deterrent. In other words, at a point of sale, theremovable portion 73 can be removed thereby disabling an anti-theft measure or providing inventory control. The removable portion is attached by a perforated section which makes removal easier.

One of ordinary skill in the art can see that the enclosure and the compact disc holder can be made from many different types of plastics, as well as either by thermal forming or injection molding. The compact disc holder can be made from a material that is either transparent or, as in the case of many musical compact discs, a design can be placed on the material. In addition, the top piece could be embossed with different designs or ornamentations.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity with reference to the drawings, obvious modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than thus specifically described.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A container comprising:

a circular lid having a lid sidewall tapered at an angle θ₁ from a vertical where θ₁ is about 12°-18°;

the lid sidewall having at least two non-overlapping lid threads disposed therein;

a container body having a circular opening of a dimension substantially the same as a dimension of the circular lid and a container sidewall tapered at an angle θ₂ substantially the same as θ₁ ;

the container sidewall having at least two non-overlapping container threads disposed thereon;

wherein the lid threads and the container threads are of substantially a same pitch and quantity so that the lid can be screwed down onto the container body.

2. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the lid thread and the container thread have a depth in the lid sidewall and the container sidewall, respectively, which is substantially a constant value at all points on the lid and container sidewalls.

3. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the circular lid includes a lid surface.

4. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the circular lid is a ring.

5. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein θ₁ is approximately 15° from vertical.

6. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein:

there are four non-overlapping lid threads; and

four non-overlapping container threads.

7. A compact disc holder, comprising:

a circular top piece having a first upper surface, a first lower surface and a first sidewall surface;

the first sidewall surface tapered at an angle θ₁, from a vertical, where θ₁ is about 12°-18° and having at least two non-overlapping top threads disposed therein;

a circular bottom piece having a second upper surface, a second lower surface and a second sidewall surface;

the second sidewall surface tapered at an angle θ₂ substantially the same as θ₁ and having at least two non-overlapping bottom threads disposed therein; wherein

the top threads and the bottom threads are of substantially a same pitch and quantity so that the top piece can be screwed down onto the bottom piece.

8. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 7, wherein

the top threads and the bottom threads have a depth in the first sidewall and the second sidewall, respectively, which is substantially a constant value at all points on the first and second sidewalls.

9. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 7, further comprising:

a compact disc pedestal disposed on the second upper surface;

a compact disc locator disposed on the compact disc pedestal; and

a stabilizer disposed in the first lower surface of the top piece.

10. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 9, further comprising:

a stacking locator disposed in the first upper surface of the top piece; and

a stacking receiver disposed in the second lower surface of the bottom piece;

said stacking locator and stacking receiver having substantially a same shape and size.

11. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 10, further comprising:

a locking groove disposed in the first upper surface; and

a locking rib disposed in the second lower surface.

12. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 11, wherein:

four non-overlapping top threads are disposed in the first sidewall surface; and

four non-overlapping bottom threads are disposed in the second sidewall surface.

13. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 12, wherein the second upper surface of the bottom piece tapers down from a periphery to a center point of the second upper surface at an angle A where A is about 0°-15°; and

the first upper surface of the top piece also tapers down from a periphery to a center point of the first upper surface at an angle approximately the same as that of the second upper surface.

14. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 7, further comprising:

a flange on the circular bottom piece; and

a removable portion removably attached to the flange.

15. A compact disc holder as recited in claim 7, wherein:

the top piece is a thermal-formed top piece; and

the bottom piece is a thermal-formed bottom piece.

16. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the lid is a thermal-formed lid; and

the container body is a thermal-formed container body.